Iswaran's 12-month prison term underlines intrinsic value of public trust

The integrity of our public institutions is paramount and serves as the lynchpin for our faith in governance.

- Eugene K.B. Tan

Integrity underpins good governance. It's a non-negotiable. When public trust erodes, the country risks descending into dysfunction, as accountability falters, and public institutions lose legitimacy.

For many in Singapore - and around the world - the high-profile case of former minister S Iswaran was seen as an anomaly here, and yet at the same time a litmus test of the integrity of our system and governance.

Last week, Iswaran pleaded guilty to four Penal Code Section 165 charges, which make it an offense for a public servant to ask for or accept gifts as a public servant from someone with whom he has an official business relationship, and one charge for the obstruction of justice. Thirty other charges under Section 165 were taken into consideration in sentencing.

On Oct 3, Justice Vincent Hoong sentenced Iswaran to 12 months' jail - twice the six to seven months the public prosecutor had argued for and about six times what the defence had put forward.

In his view, anything else would be a "manifestly inadequate sentence".

The message was clear.

The paramount importance of trust and confidence in public institutions was writ large and robustly reiterated in the High Court's 94-page ruling.

PERCEPTIONS AND PUBLIC INSTITUTIONS At one level, the sentence underscores the court's strong stance against any offense that undermines trust and confidence in public institutions.

Even perceptions of influence peddling by gift givers or abuse of office are highly detrimental as they have an insidious effect on public trust and confidence.

Perceptions often operate as reality. In other words, the harm caused can be significant even from perceptions. This is a reasonably compelling position to take.